Farrah Fawcett's Weight Plummets to 86 Pounds

April 17, 2009

By SHEILA MARIKAR and KI MAE HEUSSNER

Actress Farrah Fawcett's weight has plummetted to 86 pounds, according to her son, Redmond O'Neal.

The 24-year-old revealed the state of his ailing mother's health during a court appearance Friday. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Scott Millington transferred two felony drug cases against O'Neal to a court that could send him to a stringent rehab program because O'Neal said Fawcett's cancer battle is motivating him to stay clean.

"I'm just really upset with myself," O'Neal said at one point during the hearing.

Last week, he acknowledged a probation violation to a 2008 drug conviction and was in court Friday for sentencing. O'Neal has two other drug cases, including one filed after his recent arrest.

O'Neal and his father Ryan O'Neal, Fawcett's longtime companion, were arrested in September at the actor's Malibu home when deputies performing a probation sweep say they found methamphetamine at the house. Ryan O'Neal is in an 18-month drug diversion program after pleaded guilty to a felony drug charge.

The revelation that Fawcett's weight is staggeringly low comes little more than a week after she was released from an LA-area hospital where she was recovering from internal bleeding caused by her cancer diagnosis.

Fawcett, the 62-year-old iconic American actress, recently suffered internal bleeding as a result of her cancer diagnosis.

"She's walking and in great spirits and looking forward to celebrating Easter at home," her physician, Dr. Lawrence Piro, told People magazine, which first reported Fawcett's release. "Her home has been stocked with her favorite teas and food, and she's looking forward to enjoying them."

The former "Charlie's Angels" star was diagnosed with anal cancer in 2006. Although doctors declared her free of cancer in February 2007, a few months later they learned that the cancer had returned.

Fawcett's alternative approach to her cancer treatment has been surrounded by controversy. After her initial diagnosis, Fawcett received traditional treatments in California.

According to People.com, Fawcett was "disheartened" by both the reoccurrence of the cancer and the treatment she was receiving in the United States, so she traveled to Germany's University Clinic in Frankfurt in search of an alternative course of treatment.

Some reports have said that she received experimental stem cell treatment while in Germany. However, Nevius, the producer of an upcoming documentary about Fawcett's cancer battle, told ABCNews.com that while it's been widely reported, it has never been confirmed by Fawcett or sources close to her.

Nevius said that the actress' documentary that chronicles her battle with cancer, "A Wing and a Prayer," is slated to run on NBC later this year, although an air date has not yet been set.

Last year, an employee at the UCLA Medical Center was disciplined for accessing Fawcett's medical records, a few weeks after the hospital announced that several employees had been fired for snooping in pop singer Britney Spears' records.

Fawcett's attorney told The Associated Press that an employee at the hospital reviewed the actress' medical records without authorization and then details about her treatment appeared in the tabloid the National Enquirer.